


Mr. Wormwood

by babykpats



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV), Shameless (US)
Genre: Angst, Crossover, M/M, Mexico, Post-Season/Series 07, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-11 17:37:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12940317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babykpats/pseuds/babykpats
Summary: After Mickey crossed the border alone, he ditched his car and met someone who built him up after Ian tore him down.





	Mr. Wormwood

**Author's Note:**

> I just finished watching 13 Reasons Why. Why is Tony Padilla and Mickey Milkovich literally the same person?

Mickey maintained a death grip on the steering wheel as he drove through an unfamiliar path. Tears were slowly filling his eyes but he was not letting any drops cross his cheeks. He was done crying for him. He has spilled too much tears for him already. He was done.

Mickey did his best to repress all the emotions that has been filling him up ever since he crossed the border. He drove and he drove while his mind was on the bus back to Chicago. He thought and rethought everything that has happened between him and Ian. Mickey tried pointing out the exact moment where things went wrong. He was desperate to see what he did that led to crossing the border with a wad of cash but an empty front seat.

Once Mickey found himself at the edge of a small town, he killed the engine right as he slowed to a stop in front of a small house. Half his mind was elsewhere but the other half that was present with him told him that he needed to get rid of the stolen car. He drove the car up the curb and right on the empty lot beside the small house. He grabbed the cash, hastily ditched the dress, the heels, the wig and the earrings. He put on his normal clothes wincing when he caught a faint wiff of Ian on them.

Before he completely abandoned the car, he saw the burner phone. Mickey looked around and saw a street sign that said Avenida Alvaro. He held the phone in his hand and thought it through. He knew that Ian was never coming back for him. This last goodbye felt final, like the last nail on the tomb, never to be opened again. But fuck if he didn't give Ian and him one last lifeline.

Before Mickey could change his mind, he quickly sent off the street name to Ian and threw the phone onto the car floor. It was vague but if Ian cared enough to look, then that should be enough to find him. He shut the door and started walking.

Mickey walked the full length of the street until he found himself at an intersection. He followed his gut and turned right. He walked a couple houses down and muttered curses when he realized that he's led himself towards a dead end. "Fuck."

He looked around and paused when he saw something that caught his eye. It was an old car, shiny red and well-maintained. Mickey ran the pros and cons of stealing the car quickly through his head. He dismissed the idea thinking that if someone spent so much time restoring this car and it comes up missing, something told Mickey that that person won't let it go that easily.

Nonetheless, Mickey stepped forward to admire the car. It was a cherry red Mustang with two white stripes on the hood, shiny rims and nice leather from what Mickey can see. A small smile appeared on Mickey's face. He thought back to the days of his childhood when there was still a clear divide between the North and the Southside. Terry would send Mickey and the others off to the Northside where they would hotwire some cars and drive them back home. Northsiders knew that they wouldn't survive a day in the Southside so they reported it to the police instead of taking matters into their own hands. By the time the report's been filed, the Milkoviches would have already given the car a new coat of paint and new plates and sold them off to the highest bidder.

His brothers were ballsy as fuck stealing the Rovers and the Bentleys further up north, and they have the police records to prove it. Mickey was smart, he settled for the Prius-es that littered the streets right at the border, that way he could go back and make a two-in-one.

"Quien coño eres?!"

The yell snapped Mickey out of his thoughts and he was immediately on the defensive. He quickly shoved the envelope of cash in his back pocket and raised both fists while he scanned his surroundings looking for whoever yelled at him. Mickey spotted him, the man walked down the stairs in front of his house and walked over to where Mickey was. Something shiny in the man's left hand caught his eye and Mickey dropped his fists. He needed to get out of this situation without any bullets piercing his body.

"No Spanish." Mickey yelled, as if he was talking to a two-year-old.

The man looked back at him with a confused look on his face.

"No. Spanish." Mickey tried, just a bit louder.

The man chuckled. "I'm Hispanic, not deaf." He said in a perfectly American accent.

Mickey couldn't help the shocked look appearing on his face. "You speak English." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Albeit a fucking dumb one.

The man chuckled. "What are you doing hanging around my car?" He asked.

Mickey didn't miss the fact that the man's left hand was still holding the gun. Mickey shrugged. "She's yours, huh? 1966?"

"'68." the man answered.

"Nice." Mickey answered. "Just admiring."

The suspicion never left the man's face. "Admiring my car, in the middle of the night?"

Mickey shrugged once again. "Just crossed the border, got a little lost."

Both of the man's eyebrows rose. "The border, huh? You walked the whole way?"

"Uh, no. Bus." Mickey quickly replied.

The man scoffed. "Bus, right. So where are you headed now?"

Mickey knew from the tone he was using that he didn't believe a single word Mickey was saying but at least the gun was still firmly within the man's pocket. "Uh, a motel maybe?"

The man laughed. "You're at the edge of the city. There're no motel for another couple miles."

"Fuck." Mickey muttered.

"Jesus." The man muttered as well. After a pause, the man spoke again. "Get your ass inside."

Mickey frowned. "What?"

"Get your ass inside the house before I change my mind." The man started walking back into the house.

Mickey gave himself a couple of seconds to consider the situation before shrugging and following him. Hell, the worse thing that could happen is he gets killed and even that doesn't seem too bad right about now.

The first thing that Mickey sees when he walks in was a clock, it was four in the morning. Mickey frowned as he tried to figure out the last time he got some sleep. He walked further in and looked around. The place was bare. There was a small kitchen with nothing on the counters and no fridge, there was an empty space beside it that's supposedly the dining room. In the living room, there was a lone couch. That's it. "You just move in or something?" Mickey asked.

The man scoffed. "Really? Homeless guy's judging my house?"

Mickey frowned as he geared up to deny his homelessness but then, he stopped. Fuck, he was homeless. He just answered with a shrug. "Why are you letting me in?"

"Look around. I have nothing that you can steal. I mean, unless you really want that ten-year-old couch." The man chuckled. "Plus, you look like you've been through some shit."

Mickey's mind automatically went back to a pair of green eyes. "Yeah." Mickey sighed.

"So, you can spend the night on the couch. Only bathroom I have is in my room and I am not letting you in there so you can piss outside. I have no food but water's good on the tap." He shrugged.

Mickey looked at the man in front of him. He was maybe an inch shorter than Mickey, which was rare, but they were both built the same way, thick and solid. His skin was tan, almost caramel, and his hair was cut the same way Mickey's hair was, shorter on the sides and longer on the top. "What's your name?"

"Tony." he replied.

Mickey nodded. He was about to give Tony his name but he switched gears at the last minute. "Alex."

Tony nodded. "Have a good night, Alex."

~

Mickey opened his eyes and winced when he felt a rogue spring digging into his back. This couch was shit but it was so much better than sleeping on the floor like he tried out a couple nights ago.

He dreamt of Ian again. Fleeting memories of the times they've spent together. It's been happening a lot. It's like Ian had a permanent residence on the back of Mickey's eyelids that every time he closes his eyes, Ian was there ready to greet him.

He's been staying at Tony's for a little over a month now. They've established a weird relationship where Mickey pays rent with Ian's money and Tony stays out of his way.

Tony's usually out during the morning and comes back at night. Mickey usually takes the bus to a small town, right before the city. He does odd jobs here and there and they usually pay him with food and barely enough money to take the bus back to Tony's place.

Mickey adjusts himself on the couch as he stared up at the ceiling, trying to figure out his next move. He definitely lucked out with Tony. He was nice enough to talk to when Mickey woke up early enough to catch him on his way out.

But Mickey wasn't naive enough to think that everyone in Mexico would just let him sleep on their couch. He'd stay until Tony kicks his ass out and maybe try to find a more permanent job to support himself once Ian's money runs out. He wedged his hand under the couch and pulled-out the torn up envelope. He shoved it back into his jeans and sat down.

He's been wearing the same clothes since he got here and it's starting to show. Mickey wrinkled his face when he gave his shirt a sniff. What used to contain a small inkling of Ian's scent now smells of his own stink.

Mickey sighed and got up to use the bathroom. A quick glance towards the clock told Mickey that it was already noon and Tony would have been long gone.

When he opened the door to Tony's room, he realized how wrong he was. Tony was laying on his bed, the hem of his shirt gathered up under his armpits and his boxer briefs pushed down around his thighs. In between was Tony's hand wrapped around his erection.

"Fuck!" Mickey yelled, shielding his eyes. "What the fuck!"

"Shit. What the fuck!" Tony yelled back, pulling his underwear up and his shirt down. "Don't you fucking knock?!"

"You're usually out by now!" Mickey yelled back.

"Jesus Christ, Alex!" Tony replied matching the volume of Mickey's voice.

Mickey slowly lowered his hand and dropped it completely when he realized that Tony was now decent, save for the angry bulge fighting against the constraints of his boxer briefs. Mickey chuckled. "Hey, don't let me disturb you, I just need to take a piss and you can go back to-" Mickey waved his hand to encompass Tony's whole bed.

Tony replied with a raised middle finger.

Mickey chuckled as he walked into the bathroom.

He took a piss and a quick shower. He put his old clothes back on, mildly annoyed that his stinky clothes will touch his freshly washed skin. He stepped out of the bathroom to find Tony, now with some shorts on. "Jesus. You smell disgusting." Tony frowned.

"Fuck off. Go back to tugging your dick." Mickey replied with no real bite. He did smell like a fucking dumpster.

Tony chuckled and walked to his dresser. He pulled out a shirt and a pair of shorts. He paused for a quick second before pulling out a pair of boxer briefs as well. He then tossed the clothes towards Mickey.

Mickey frowned as he looked at the clothes he now had in his arms. "Why the fuck are you giving me this shit?" Mickey asked. No one was nice for no reason.

Tony shrugged. "Dollar value is going up. Got some extra peso from the rent money you gave."

Mickey nodded. Fair enough. He went back in the bathroom to change, ignoring the fact that he was about to put on a stranger's underwear. He gathered up his clothes making a mental note to look for a laundromat later in town. He left the bathroom to find Tony still laying on his bed.

"You just gonna lay around the whole day?" Mickey asked.

Tony shrugged. "Got the morning off. What 'dyou got going on?"

Mickey shrugged. "Gonna go look for a job or something."

Tony sat up and looked at Mickey from head to toe, appraising him. "I got a job for you."

Mickey frowned at Tony's tone. "Doing what?"

"You'll see." He answered cryptically. "We leave at 3pm."

"You're a weird little man." Mickey said.

"You want the job or not?" Tony said, slowly raising his voice.

"I didn't say I didn't want it, did I?" Mickey replied.

Tony scoffed. "Well, get the hell out of my room then."

Mickey rolled his eyes and left the room.

~

Mickey did a quick trip to town to visit the old lady.

He doesn't really know her name or why she's living on her own. They met when she called Mickey from the street and asked him to sweep the cobwebs off the ceiling. The old lady only speaks in Spanish and Mickey just nods to whatever she says.

Mickey has grown fond of this old lady.

After a couple more times of visiting the old lady, she started getting used to Mickey coming around and she'd wait for him on her porch with a glass of cold water. Mickey would go in and work on whatever the old lady would point at and when he's done there would be a small plate of food waiting for him on the table.

This time, after a crazy game of charades, the old lady let Mickey use her washer and drier.

Once his washing was done, he gathered his clothes and did an exaggerated wave in front of the old lady.

He took the bus back to Tony's and let himself in.

"Ready to go?" Tony asked.

Mickey tossed his clothes onto the couch and nodded.

They made their way out the front door and got into Tony's car. While they were on the road, Tony pulled out his phone and made a phone call. The whole conversation was in Spanish so he just drowned Tony's voice out with his thoughts.

He focused his attention on the view outside his window. He's never really seen much of the area. He's grown familiar with the path the bus took from Tony's house to the small town and that's about it.

From what Mickey could tell, they were going towards the city. The dirt roads became paved concrete and the trees became lowrise buildings.

Tony was still on the phone but his demeanor seemed to change along with the surroundings. Slumped shoulders became tensed muscles, long flowing sentences became clipped one word answers. Mickey started wondering what he got himself into.

Mickey's mind started working overtime as he thought of escape routes if Tony ended up trying to kill him or sell him off or something. His mind was so busy that he didn't realize that the car stopped moving.

Mickey looked around and he found them in some sort of suburb.

"Ready?" Tony asked.

"What exactly am I supposed to do?" Mickey asked, surveying his surroundings, looking for a way out.

"Well, if things go well, all you have to do is look intimidating." Tony answered.

"And if it doesn't go well?" Mickey asked. This situation was eerily familiar.

Tony smirked and handed Mickey a gun. "Only pull this out when I tell you to."

Mickey looked at the gun that was now in his hand. Then, he looked at the house they were about to go into. Mickey started laughing. Only Mickey Milkovich can break out of jail, cross the border and still somehow find himself on the cusp of something illegal.

"What the hell?" Tony reached out to take the gun back.

"No, no. I'm good." Mickey said, recovering from an unexpected bout of laughter. He started feeling more confident when he realized that this was pretty much like the drug runs his dad had them do. "I'm good, let's go."

Tony gave Mickey one last look before moving to exit the car.

Out of habit, Mickey moved to wedge the gun into his boots but then stopped when he realized that he was wearing cheap sandals that he bought from an old man on the street. He settled for placing the gun in the band of his shorts and then moved to follow Tony. He would've worn better shoes had he known this was what they were doing.

Tony knocked on the door.

Mickey tensed his body in anticipation of what was going to happen.

The door swung open and a man, not too far from his age, opened the door. "Pocho, to what do we owe the pleasure?" Beyond the heavy accent, Mickey caught the mocking tone that accompanied the statement.

"Tio sent me with something for the boss." Tony replied with an accent that Mickey's never heard before.

"The gringo?" He asked, motioning towards Mickey.

"A friend." Tony answered simply.

The man shrugged and let them both in.

Tony moved around the house like he lived there. He seemed familiar with the layout as he walked further into the house. They reached a closed door where Tony paused to take a breath. Then, he knocked.

The door opened and the first thing he saw was an old man seated on a reclining arm chair. He turned his head towards Tony when they stepped into the room.

"Antonio." He greeted.

Tony nodded his greeting. "Tio says to give this to you." Tony pulled a thick brown envelope from his pocket and handed it over to the old man.

The man received the envelope and handed it off to be counted.

While the waiting, the old man eyed Mickey, similar to how Tony eyed him before offering him the job, like he was looking for something. "Who's the gringo?" He asked in a raspy voice.

"A friend. Alex." Tony said.

The man's eyebrow rose and gave them a small smile. A flash of recognition in his eyes. "Alex." He repeated.

Mickey froze.

Before the old man can say anything else, the envelope was handed back with a whisper to his ear. The old man laughed. "I told your Tio to pay me everything he owes plus interest."

Tony shrugged. "He told me he'll pay what he owes and nothing more."

The old man's eyes moved back to Mickey. "I'll accept this for now, since you were a good friend of my nephew. But next time, I won't be as nice."

"Gracias." Tony muttered before turning around to leave.

"Mikhailo Aleksandr Milkovich." The old man said.

"Fuck." Mickey muttered as he turned around to look at the old man.

"Welcome to Mexico." He said with a grin.

~

Mickey speed walked into the car and slammed the door shut. "Fuck!" He yelled slamming his fist into the dashboard.

"What the fuck!" Tony yelled as he got into the driver's side. "Don't fucking hit my car!"

"That's what you're worried about? Your fucking car?!" Mickey yelled.

"The fuck's wrong with you, asshole?" Tony yelled, inspecting the dash for any damages.

"He knows my name!" Mickey yelled. "He knows who I am and the cops are gonna know I'm here and they're taking me fucking back." Mickey rambled, evaluating his options.

Tony started chuckling.

"The fuck are you laughing about?" Mickey snapped.

"That man, the 'boss', makes his money smuggling criminals into Mexico. He keeps tabs on who's been brought in and reaches out to the ones highest on the food chain and gives them the option to live out the rest of their lives in Mexico." Tony said. "So, what were you in for?"

Mickey slowly processed the information. "Attempted murder."

Tony nodded. "Good. You're of no value."

Mickey frowned, mildly offended. "The fuck does that mean?"

Tony chuckled once again. "The worst thing that can happen is be on his radar. Whenever the police comes knocking on his door, he usually has a list of expendables, low level criminals he can point the cops to to keep the higher ups safe."

"Great! So when the cops come knocking on his door, he'll show them the way to me!" Mickey said, exaperatedly.

"Would you let me finish?" Tony said. "The criminals they're after are people in the drug trade, human traffickers, criminals that can be a danger to America even while they're here in Mexico. They don't give a shit about murderers. Far as they're concerned, you're not their problem now."

"How the fuck do you know?" Mickey asked.

"Family's originally from Puerto Rico but I was born and raised in California." Tony explained. "Dad had an auto shop that somehow became a front for some drug shit that my uncle was into. Had to move the family to Mexico as a pre-emptive measure. The money we had to deliver was payment for protection."

"So your family is into drugs?" Mickey asked, slowly calming down.

"Nah. Just my uncle and some cousins. Dad wanted out the moment we moved here. I work for him in the auto shop." Tony said starting the engine.

"Then what the fuck was all that that we did?" Mickey asked.

Tony grinned. "A favor for a friend." He pulled out another envelope and tossed it onto Mickey's lap.

Mickey picked it up and opened it to find a few thousand pesos inside. "What the fuck!"

"My uncle told me that I could keep the interest if I got to walk out of there with it. Plus, I got to learn your real name so, two birds one stone." Tony chuckled. "Split that 50-50." He said, motioning towards the envelope.

Mickey counted out the bills. "So you knew who I was?"

"Nah. Just had an inkling. No one walks the border. Plus, you parked your car beside my grandma's house. I ran the tags and it was reported stolen." Tony replied. "You're one sloppy escaped criminal, you know that?"

"Fuck." Mickey muttered.

"Took care of it. Sent the car to be sold for parts and told them to send whatever's left to the dump." Tony said. When they stopped at a traffic light, Tony reached towards the backseat and placed something on Mickey's lap. "Found that. Was gonna sell it but it isn't worth much. That yours?"

Mickey looked down at the burner phone. He took it and pocketed it quickly. "Yeah, it's mine."

Tony nodded and they drove back in silence.

~

Mickey was stretched out on the couch and Tony was fixing the takeout they got before the exited the city.

"Who was that kid that opened the door a while ago? He called you something." Mickey asked. Now that he wasn't panicking about being caught by the police, his mind was a bit clearer as he thought back to the events that played out this afternoon.

"That was Jacob. Boss's nephew." Tony said.

"You close or something?" Mickey asked. "Boss said you were."

Tony chuckled. "He's my ex."

Mickey sat up immediately, whole body stiff. "You gay?"

Tony shrugged.

Mickey carried on staring at Tony, looking at him in a new light.

"You do know that you can't actually see gayness, right?" Tony chuckled.

Mickey chuckled. "So when he called you- uh-"

"Pocho?" Tony said.

"Yeah, that. Does that mean like sexy-ass or hot-dick or something." Mickey grinned.

"You're like an old man with your old man jokes." Tony shook his head. "Pocho is a Mexican who left Mexico, grew up in the States, can't speak Spanish. Me, pretty much."

"You can't speak Spanish?" Mickey asked.

Tony shrugged. "I'm better at it than when we moved but I still like speaking English better."

Mickey nodded as he rose to join Tony in the kitchen, eating their dinner standing up.

~

"So why does your house look like no one lives here? I mean even your freakin' bedroom only has a bed and a dresser." Mickey asked

They've been talking all night, sitting side by side on the couch. There wasn't anything else they can do, Tony didn't even have a TV they could watch. All they had was a couch and lukewarm beer since Tony didn't have a fridge.

Tony shrugged. "Today is probably the longest I've spent in this house. I'm usually over at my grandma's or with my dad at the auto shop."

Tony let out a huge burp and bent over to place another empty beer can on the floor. They've worked through a whole six-pack and they were halfway through another one.

"You got brothers?"

Tony nodded. "Three brothers and a sister. You?"

"Four brothers, one sister or no, two sisters." Mickey corrected, thinking of Molly.

"Same mom?"

"Same mom?"

They chuckled when they realized they asked the same question at the same time.

"Mandy and I have the same mom." Mickey answered.

"Everyone has the same mom except me." Tony said.

There was a brief pause in the conversation before Mickey broke the silence with an exasperated sigh.

"It's too fucking quiet!" Mickey said.

Tony laughed. "What do you have against a little peace and quiet?"

"Was too quiet on the inside." Mickey muttered, his words running into one another as he took another gulp of his beer.

Tony slowly nodded. "How did that happen, anyway?"

"Short version is that I killed my ex's half-sister for calling the cops on my ex." Mickey shrugged.

"What's his name?" Tony asked.

Mickey froze.

"I mean you wouldn't be putting too much effort in hiding the pronouns if your ex was a girl." Tony chuckled.

Mickey sighed. "Ian."

"Ian. Ian. Ian." Tony said, trying it out in a variety of accents.

Mickey chuckled. "Fuck are you doing?"

"Mickey. Mick. Mix? Mikhailo. Khail." Tony tried out.

"The fuck?" Mickey laughed.

"You didn't look like an Alex." Tony said.

"Yeah?" Mickey burped. "What did I look like?"

Tony turned to give Mickey a better look.

Mickey turned his head to look at Tony. His eyes were brown tonight. A while ago, it looked green, almost yellow. But now it was a bright brown. They look good on him.

"Mickey. You look like a Mickey." Tony said.

~

You know that feeling where you're having a dream and you're aware that none of the shit happening around you is real but you have no clue how to wake yourself up?

That was how Mickey found himself in a jail cell with Ian. He knew, at the back of his head, that none of this crap was real but he felt like he was trapped inside his body which he has no control over.

Ian was slowly walking towards him, not saying anything.

Mickey was laying down on what felt like the lower bunk. He tried to roll his body off the bed or to even just get up, but he wasn't budging.

Ian's body was inches above his own, his hands coming around Mickey's throat and started to choke him.

Mickey tried yelling but nothing was coming out of his mouth.

"Mickey!"

Mickey opened his eyes and found Tony prying his hands away from his own throat.

"What the hell, Mickey?" Tony was still holding Mickey's hands by the wrist.

"Bad dream." Mickey muttered, sitting up.

"Yeah, no shit." Tony replied, walking to the kitchen and retrieving a glass of water, handing it off to Mickey.

Mickey downed the whole glass in one go. "Fuck." Mickey muttered, wiping the sweat off of his forehead.

"Wanna talk about it?" Tony took a seat next to Mickey.

The shirt Tony let Mickey use was now drenched in sweat, as was the seats of the couch. The result of a mixture of the Mexican heat and the nightmare. He pulled the fabric away from his body and winced at the sensation. "Drenched your couch." Mickey said.

Tony immediately stood up, chuckling. "Yeah, I was trying to be polite and not say anything about it but I think I sat in a really wet spot."

Mickey chuckled, worries momentarily forgotten.

"You wanna crash in my room? I got the A/C in there." Tony offered.

Mickey frowned.

Tony raised both hands to dismiss any wrong ideas. "You can sleep on the bed or on the floor, I don't really care."

Mickey shook his head. His mind was still all rattled because of Ian. "Good here." He muttered.

"Alright." Tony nodded, making his way back to his room.

He left the door open and Mickey could feel a faint breeze that came from the opened door. Mickey smiled at the gesture.

Mickey made himself comfortable on the sofa, or at least tried to. The cool breeze from Tony's room cooled the wet spots on the sofa causing Mickey's body to shiver. He contemplated getting up to close the door but then that would just leave with warm wet spots instead of cold ones.

After ten more minutes of trying to be comfortable, he gave up and walked into Tony's room.

The first thing that Mickey heard was Tony's chuckles.

"Took you long enough." Tony said, as he scooted to the opposite side of his bed.

"Shut up." Mickey muttered. He was full on shivering now, his clothes were drenched and the AC was on full blast. "Uh, you mind if I take off my clothes? Fucking drenched."

"You scared I'll steal your virtue?" Tony teased.

Mickey laughed. "Shut up." He stripped down to the boxer briefs and carefully settled into the bed. There was a small sigh of pleasure when he felt the softness of the mattress under him and the warmth of the duvet above him.

"You do know that I have to raise your rent now, right?" Tony said.

Mickey snorted. "You'd have more guys in your bed if you didn't act like Mr. Wormwood."

"Did you-? Are you-? Is that a crack on my height?" Tony sputtered.

Mickey was already laughing at this point. "Maybe."

"You're as short as I am!" Tony flipped to his side so he can send accusatory looks toward Mickey.

"I'm fucking taller than you are, shortstack." Mickey said through his laughter.

"By one inch! Barely, even!" Tony yelled.

"Calm your fucking ass down." Mickey laughed. "I was joking."

Tony resumed his earlier position, laying on his back. "People always used to laugh at me. For being too short and stuff."

Mickey shrugged. "Me too. Used to come home all banged up cause kids used to think they can take me cause I was shorter." Mickey said.

"I learned how to fight back. Be the bully so I won't be bullied." Tony continued.

"Jesus." Mickey chuckled. "Thank god we didn't go to the same school. We woulda caused all kinds of shit."

Tony chuckled. "Kept wishing that I'll grow at least a couple more inches so people would stop picking on me."

"Nah." Mickey replied. "Your height suits you. Looks good."

Tony smiled in the darkness. "I know."

Mickey scoffed.

"What was your dream about?" Tony asked.

Mickey sighed. "Ian choking me."

"Were you into that?" Tony asked.

"What? No!" Mickey fought the urge to laugh. He was slowly realizing how easy it was to laugh around Tony.

"How the hell would I know." Tony chuckled.

Mickey sighed. "Can't get rid of him. Every time I close my eyes, he's there. He's always fucking there."

"Was he abusive?" Tony asked.

Mickey chuckled. "I was more abusive, I think. Was deep in the closet when we met, thought I could keep him in the closet with me."

Tony nodded. "How did it end?"

Mickey winced. "He left me at the border."

"Oh."

"The money I pay you with, all from him." Mickey whispered.

Tony nodded, trying to digest the information. "Give it some more time, I guess. It's only been a month and some weeks. You'll eventually get over him if you want to."

"If I want to." Mickey repeated.

"My turn to tell the story?" Tony asked.

Mickey let out an unexpected chuckle. "Knock yourself out."

"Before we moved, back in Cali, I had a friend who killed herself cause of the shit people did to her." Tony whispered, as if he was imparting some kind of sacred information.

Mickey scoffed. "What did they do? Wear the same fucking outfit as her?"

Tony immediately rose from the bed, planted one hand in the middle of Mickey's chest while the other hand was balled into a fist, reared back, ready to hit. "Don't fucking talk about her like that."

"Jesus. Sorry, I was kidding." Mickey said, arms raised.

Tony relaxed his hand, the other still firmly planted on Mickey's chest. "She was raped. Among other things."

A flash of sadness crossed Mickey's face. "Yeah. That shit sucks."

Tony frowned, seeming like he saw something on Mickey's face. "Is there a story behind that?"

Mickey looked at Tony's eyes, illuminated by the moonlight filtering through the window. It was a dark brown tonight. "Was raped."

"Shit." Tony muttered. "I am so sorry."

Mickey gave him a sad smile. "I'm over it. Took a while but I'm over it." Mickey whispered, eyes glued to Tony's dark eyes.

Mickey moved his hand towards the hand Tony had on his chest, with the intention of moving it away. What he ended up doing was simply resting his hand on top of Tony's.

He looked at Tony's lips, hoping that the darkness will hide the fact that he was staring.

Tony smiled and lowered his face until he was only a couple of inches away from his face. He paused before he got too close, waiting for Mickey to either meet him the rest of the way or push him off.

Mickey closed the distance between them. He moved Tony's hand away from his chest so that Tony was resting completely against his body. Every body part touching, from chest to crotch.

Mickey licked against the spot where Tony's top lip met the bottom. He planted his feet on the bed and he thrusted his crotch upward to rub against Tony.

"Fuck." Tony moaned quietly. He licked along Mickey's teeth, rubbing his tongue against Mickey's. Both his palms were flat on the bed to keep his balance as his whole body was positioned on top of Mickey's.

Mickey's hands were all over Tony's body. He ran his hands across Tony's back, rising and falling along with his muscles. Mickey pushed Tony's shorts and grabbed one butt cheek in each hand, moaning against Tony's mouth.

This seemed to snap Tony out of the lust-fueled trance. "Wait, wait. Stop."

"What?" Mickey looked at Tony with clouded eyes, erection throbbing within his underwear.

"Fuck. Can't believe I'm about to say this." Tony muttered, burying his face in Mickey's chest. "I don't wanna do this until you're sure you're over Ian."

Mickey frowned, heart pounding against his rib cage. "The fuck do you think this is?"

Tony's face fell before quickly regaining his stoic facade. "I don't wanna have sex with someone who's gonna be thinking of someone else when I'm pounding into him."

"Jesus. It's just sex." Mickey muttered.

Tony sighed and got off of Mickey's body. "If you want a quick fuck, you have to look somewhere else."

Mickey frowned. "Well, what do we have here if we can't have just a quick fuck?"

Tony let out a dry chuckle. "Forget it."

Mickey was at a loss. What the fuck just happened?

"Look, I'm sorry for jumping on you like that. I shouldn't have done that." Tony said, looking directly into Mickey's eyes.

Mickey was still completely confused, but he nodded.

Tony gave him a small smile. "'Night."

Mickey nodded again.

He wanted it to happen. He wanted to have sex with Tony. It was like whenever Tony was around, his senses were so full of the other man that Ian had no space left in his head.

He didn't even spare a second to think about Ian. All he thought about was Tony's lips and skin and dick and ass. Just Tony.

Mickey frowned. How the fuck did he mess this up?

~

Tony woke up to the bed vibrating.

He opened his eyes and saw the orange-pink sky through the window. It was still too early.

He frowned and turned to see Mickey curled into himself, slightly shivering. Mickey has somehow kicked the blanket completely off of his body throughout the night. He was naked save for the boxer briefs that Tony lent him.

Tony got out of bed and walked to the AC to adjust the temperature, shivering slightly when the cold air hit his skin.

He walked back towards the bed and covered Mickey's body with the blanket. He took a minute to just watch Mickey sleep before walking to his side of the bed and getting in.

~

Mickey's eyes slowly opened. He felt warm and cozy.

He buried his face further into the pillow.

"You up?" Tony's deep voice floated from behind him.

Mickey groaned into the pillow. This was probably the best sleep he's had, ever.

Tony chuckled. "My aunt always has this big breakfast thing at her house every Sunday."

Mickey grunted in response.

"Wanna come?" Tony asked.

The events from the night before slowly filtered into Mickey's brain and he was suddenly aware of his nakedness.

Tony seemed to have noticed. "Can I ask for a favor?" He said.

Mickey turned to face Tony keeping the blanket on him. "What?"

"I'm really sorry for last night, can we just pretend like that didn't happen?" A small pout appearing on Tony's mouth.

Mickey frowned. He hasn't sorted through his emotions yet. But what he was sure of was that he liked Tony. Tony was like a drug. Whenever they were together, Mickey was happy. Tony helped him forget all the crap in his life. He wasn't sure if he just wanted to pretend like nothing happened. He wanted to go with what happened, see where it took them.

"I shouldn't have done what I did." Tony muttered.

Mickey wasn't ready to talk about this yet. "Can we just eat first before I have to deal with your stupid shit?"

Tony chuckled. "Alright."

~

Mickey fiddled with the new shirt that Tony lent him. The sleeves were cut of too low and Mickey felt like a dick.

The door to Tony's grandma's house opened and Mickey's eyes grew.

"Hey! Didn't know you were Tony's aunt!" Mickey said. The lady who opened the door was the old lady that Mickey has been helping out.

"Antonio! Alejandro!" she exclaimed.

Tony fixed a confused look towards Mickey. "Alejandro?"

Mickey shrugged. "She couldn't pronounce Alex so I let her call me whatever she wants."

Tony hugged his aunt and walked into the house with Mickey behind him.

"So my aunt was the old lady you were helping out?" Tony clarified.

Mickey nodded. "Apparently."

When Mickey walked into the house, he was hit with a weird sense of nostalgia. For some reason, he felt like he was transported back to the Milkovich house.

Tony had a ton of aunts and uncles and cousins and family friends all crammed into a tiny space. They were loud and in your face and Mickey grinned because he felt right at home.

Tony brought him around the house, introducing him to various relatives. Most of his relatives spoke English which was insanely refreshing.

Tony's aunt came up to the pair and handed them heaping plates of food.

"Novio?" She asked.

Tony's eyes grew. "No, Tia. Amigo."

She gave Tony a knowing look. "Deberías llevarlo antes de que lo pierdas. El esta buen trabajador. Te doy mi bendición!" She cheered before walking away to hands plates off of to other people.

Mickey watched as Tony's face slowly become a deep red. "What did she say?" He asked.

"Nothing." Tony immediately replied.

Mickey rolled his eyes. "She asked you if I was your boyfriend and you said I was only your friend. I got that part. It's the long part I didn't understand."

Tony's eyebrows rose in shock as they squeezed themselves on a couch along with Tony's other uncles. "You're learning!"

Mickey shook his head to dismiss the praise. "What did she say?"

Tony sighed. "She said that I should snatch you up before I lose you to someone else. She said that you were a hard worker and that we'd have her blessing."

Mickey chuckled. "You gonna put a ring on it?"

"Fuck off and eat your damn food." Tony snapped.

"Yes, sweetie." Mickey mocked.

~

It's been two months. Two months since the incident.

Mickey's got a job as a shelf filler at the local grocery store on Tony's aunt's recommendation. There was one girl that spoke English so he sheepishly stuck to her during the first few days.

During those two months, Tony has attempted to bring home a total of three different guys.

The first guy happened when Mickey was chilling on the couch. He was having his dinner of chips and beer whe he heard Tony's car drive into the parking space.

Mickey walked towards the front window and frowned when he saw that Tony wasn't alone.

Mickey quickly shoved the chips and beer into a random cabinet in the kitchen and he ran into Tony's room. He quickly turned on the air conditioner, closed the lights and dove into the bed, pretending to be asleep.

Mickey heard Tony opening the door, some whispers, and then the door closing again. Then, he heard sounds coming from the living room. Mickey frowned.

He got out of bed, exited the room and made a show of stretching and yawning. Tony and the guy were seated on the couch facing each other.

The frown returned to Mickey's face. "You coming to bed yet?" Mickey asked Tony.

The guy looked from Tony's face to Mickey's then back. There was a short conversation that Mickey only understood a few words from and then the guy left.

Mickey fell asleep grinning that night.

The second guy was a closer call.

Tony texted him to ask what time he was gonna be home. Mickey texted Tony a later time on purpose. When he got home, he went straight to Tony's room and found them making out half-naked with Tony on top of the guy.

Mickey cleared his throat and was out the door by the time Mickey was ready for bed.

The third guy is happening right now.

Mickey was standing across the street from Tony's house. Tony's car just got in and Mickey could see the silhouette of two people. He watched as they moved towards the back seat.

"Fuck." Mickey muttered.

Mickey was trying to think of a way to stop them from continuing but then they froze and he saw Tony move to the driver's seat. The engine started and the car backed up and drove away.

Mickey frowned.

He slowly made his way back into the house. He grabbed a can of beer from the cabinet and sat on the couch waiting for Tony to come back.

Mickey woke up when he heard the front door slam close.

"What the hell is your problem?" Tony was walking quickly towards him on the couch.

"What?" Mickey asked still disoriented from his nap.

"You don't like other people having sex when you're not getting any?" Tony asked, now standing in front of Mickey.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Mickey muttered, attempting to straighten his hair.

"You kick out the two guys I brought home and then tonight you stand across the street watching us like a pervert!" Tony yelled.

Mickey kept quiet. Gathering the courage to finally tell Tony how he felt.

"Look, if you can't handle it, maybe you should just move out." Tony yelled.

Mickey's eyes grew as he felt all his insides fall to the floor. "What?" Mickey asked quietly.

Tony frowned when he saw Mickey's reaction. "Mickey, look-"

Just like that, Mickey's walls were up. He frowned, choosing instead to be angry rather than hurt. "Fucking fine. I'll go."

"Mickey, I didn't mean it. Wait." Tony said.

Mickey stopped listening the moment he was asked to leave. He grabbed the one lone set of clothes he had which was stacked neatly on the kitchen counter. He stomped into Tony's room, then the bathroom. He quickly changed and walked back into the living room.

He grabbed his wallet from under the couch and pulled out a couple of bills and threw them on the couch. "Should be enough for this month." Mickey muttered.

"Mickey." Tony said, placing a hand on his arm. "Stop."

"You told me to go, I'll fucking go." Mickey snapped.

"Where will you go?" Tony asked in a frustratingly calm voice.

"Away from here." Mickey snapped.

Tony sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said, okay?"

Mickey shook his head. "I wanna leave." Mickey said.

Tony sighed. "Look, the bus isn't running anymore. Stay tonight then you can leave tomorrow if you really want to, okay?"

Mickey looked at Tony straight in the eyes before nodding. "Fine." Mickey moved towards the couch, kicked his boots off and did his best to lie down comfortably.

Tony sighed again and moved around the room to close the lights. "Goodnight." he said before walking into his room, leaving the door open.

Mickey frowned. He can't believe this was happening all over again. His mind kept running everything over, trying to think of what he did wrong and what he could've done differently.

And right on cue, the tears came.

~

Tony felt like shit.

He was pissed off but he didn't want Mickey to move out. He kept tossing and turning in his bed before giving up and walking back out into the living room.

He couldn't tell in the dark if Mickey was asleep or not.

He backtracked into his room, grabbed his pillow and a blanket and made a small nest beside the couch before laying down.

~

Mickey snorted when he saw what Tony was doing. "Fuck are you doing here?"

Tony shrugged. "I like it better here."

"I'm leaving in the morning." Mickey answered, completely set on his decision. He was thinking about moving into the town where the grocery store was.

Tony reached out towards Mickey and felt around until he found Mickey's hand. "I don't want you to leave."

"I don't want to be here." Mickey said.

Tony sighed. "Okay. I just wanted to let you know that I want you here and I'll be sad when you leave tomorrow."

"I don't care." Mickey snapped.

"Well, since it's our last night together, I just want to ask you something." Tony said.

Mickey didn't reply. He was feeling weird emotions as Tony took his hand and entwined their fingers.

"Why?" Tony asked.

"Why what?"

"Why did you chase all of them away?" Tony asked as his thumb rubbed circles on Mickey's hand.

Mickey kept quiet, concentrating instead on the motion of Tony's fingers.

"I mean, we're never seeing each other again, right? You're leaving tomorrow and I'll be alone here again. So, what would it matter if you answered me?" Tony asked.

Mickey frowned. "Are you mocking me?"

"What?" Tony asked.

"You don't think I'm leaving!" Mickey accused.

"You think I'd be laying here on the floor if I didn't think you'd be actually leaving?"

"Fuck off." Mickey muttered.

Tony squeezed his hand. "Why, then?"

Mickey sighed. Now or never. "I don't like seeing you with other people." he muttered.

Tony squeezed Mickey's hand again, willing him to continue.

"When I'm with you, it's like you occupy my whole fucking world. All I hear is you, all I think about is you, all I fucking smell is you. You make me forget the shit that's going on everywhere else. You make me laugh a lot and it's like you don't even expect anything from me." Mickey frowned, frustrated at how the words were coming out.

Tony chuckled. "You're saying the nicest things and you still manage to sound really pissed."

"Fuck off."

Tony stood up from his spot on the floor and squeezed himself into the couch. "I really really like you." Tony whispered. "And I want you to stay. Here. With me."

Mickey grinned. "Okay."

**Author's Note:**

> Might start working on Chapter 2 but as of now, it's a oner.


End file.
